Hygiene is always a crucial concern for travellers, which is why a video circulated on social media depicting a railway vendor using a train's toilet water in tea and coffee cans went viral instantly. Taking cognisance of the video, the South Central Railway (SCR) on Wednesday announced that the vending contractor has been fined Rs 1 lakh for allegedly using toilet water in tea and coffee cans.

According to the Raliways communication, the incident reportedly took place in December 2017 on board at the Hyderabad Charminar Express at Secunderabad railway station.

Although the video does not show the actual transfer of toilet water into the tea/coffee dispenser, a man can be seen entering and exiting from the toilet on the train with the tea/coffee containers.

"An inquiry was conducted, and on the basis of it stringent action has been taken up against the Train Side Vending contractor for the section between Secunderabad and Kazipet, P Sivaprasad, with whom the identified vendor in the video was employed," South Central Railway (SCR) Chief Public Relations Officer M Umashankar Kumar said in a release.

"A penalty of Rs. 1 lakh has been levied on the licensee," he said.

"A strict vigil was continuously being kept at various levels to ensure that no such incidents are repeated in the SCR Zone," Kumar said.

The vendor later claimed that they were only transferring leftover beverages in the train toilet so as to sell it in their respective platform stalls. The vendor said that they did the transfer in the toilet to 'avoid public gaze'.

Kumar added that in the past few months the commercial department of the SCR has been carrying out extensive drives against unauthorised hawking at Secunderabad railway station.